State elections official threatened amid anger over Trump loss

A photo of her with crosshairs superimposed over it was posted on a national website.

  • By Wire Service
  • Tuesday, December 15, 2020 6:10am
  • Northwest

Associated Press

OLYMPIA — The Washington Secretary of State’s Office has reported a threat made against a worker as efforts continue to intimidate elections officials and politicians for administering the vote that led to President Donald Trump’s loss.

Republican Secretary of State Kim Wyman’s office learned of the threat over the weekend made against Elections Director Lori Augino, according to spokesperson Kylee Zabel.

It was posted on a website describing “enemies of the people,” The Seattle Times reported.

Augino’s address and some contact information were posted, as well as a photo of her with crosshairs superimposed over it and a note about her leadership role in a national association for elections directors.

State officials have notified the Department of Homeland Security and the state Fusion Center, Zabel said in an email.

Washington State Patrol spokesperson Chris Loftis wrote in an email that the agency is “aware of the threats, are monitoring the situation, and assigning resources accordingly.”

On Monday, House GOP Minority Leader J.T. Wilcox of Yelm and Senate Republican Leader John Braun of Centralia issued a statement denouncing the threat.

“We have recently seen shocking evidence of a threat to a Washington state election official … on a national website,” the joint statement said. “The harassment and threats to state election officials must stop. We continue to have confidence in the 2020 election results in our state and the work of Secretary of State Kim Wyman and her staff over the last several years,” the statement continued.

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